Diffident
by Skovko
Summary: In a moment of anger Dean grabs a worker in the arena for a promo, forgetting to fill her in on what's happening. He picked her on purpose, thinking this could be his way in. He's been watching her since she started working there. She wants to be left alone, but he's persistent. But behind the pretty face is an ugly past. Can he handle the past, or will be make it worse?
1. Scaredy cat

Dean had been thrilled when they allowed him to pull some if his old Jon Moxley gimmick into his character. He even had the fork again. They had shot some nice segments of him arriving to the arena and kicking backstage workers around. Wrestlers, of course, not signed with WWE. They were doing some "earlier today" segments to be shown that night on the show.

However, he wasn't thrilled in that moment as he had a hand on a woman's face, pressing her up against the wall. He had wanted to do this one, redeeming the one from his indie days where the stupid woman had smiled. Some referee had a daughter dying to meet her biggest idol, and he had foolishly agreed to letting her be the one for this part. She was smiling too. What the hell was the problem with his cruel side and women since they were smiling? He let go of her and let out a humph.

"Cut," the camera man said.

Jamie Noble looked at Dean. He was still working backstage for WWE, and always wanted to help wherever he could.

"Are you alright, Dean?" He asked.  
"Get me another one!" Dean sneered.  
"Another fork for Dean!" Jamie called out.  
"No!" Dean raised his voice. "Another girl!"

He heard the woman up against the wall let out a surprised sound. He didn't care. His eyes had landed on the cleaning lady further down the hall. Mackenzie. Her name was all he knew about her. And her look of course. Medium brown, straight, shoulder length hair. She had been cleaning in the arena for three weeks now, and she was different. Half the staff had never watched wrestling before getting jobs in the arena, but they quickly watched and drooled when the wrestlers came around. Mackenzie didn't. She didn't even raise her eyes to look at any of them if she could get away with it. He had caught glimpses of her honey brown eyes here and there. Over all, she was beautiful in his eyes.

"Keep the camera rolling. I'm serving one hell of a performance in a couple of seconds," he said.

He walked with determined steps down the hall where she was sweeping the floor. He grabbed her arm, and she dropped the broom when she was taken by surprise.

"You're coming with me!" He snarled.

He dragged her back to the spot, not even giving her a choice or explaining anything to her. He pushed her up against the wall, and placed his hand on her face.

"And they call me a lunatic! Look at the women throwing themselves at me!" He yelled.

He looked at her, giving her a second to respond. Nothing came but she was trembling, and tears ran down her face. And most importantly, she wasn't fucking smiling. She looked scared like she was supposed to. His hand slid down and wrapped around her throat. He leaned in and ran the teeth of the fork down her cheek.

"So this little bird here is gonna be my prey of the evening," he sniffed her hair. "God, you smell good. I wonder if you taste good too."

He licked up her cheek, tasting her salty tears, and then just stared at her.

"Cut!" The camera man yelled. "That was perfect."  
"I know," Dean grinned.

He released her and took a step towards Jamie who was one big smile.

"Damn it, Dean, you're crazy sometimes," he said.  
"It paid off, didn't it?" Dean asked.  
"Big time. Look at this," Jamie said.

The camera man rewinded the clip and showed it to them. Dean was grinning again. Mackenzie had been perfect with how scared she had looked. She had even cried on cue like a natural.

"Look at this," he said.

He turned to look at her, but she was gone. He looked in the other direction, thinking she had gone back to work, but the broom still laid on the ground.

"She ran outside," Jamie sighed. "I think you actually scared her for real."  
"Shit!" Dean hissed.

He took off running. If he had scared her, he needed to apologize. He hadn't meant to scare her. He had wanted to touch her since he laid eyes on her for the first time three weeks ago, and this had seemed like the perfect opportunity. In his mind this would have led to a conversation and laughter and maybe even a date. He had messed up. He ran outside where she was standing on her own.

"Hey!" He placed a hand on her shoulder.

She jumped in fear as he startled her. She took a step backwards, clearly not wanting him to touch her.

"Please, I did what you wanted. Leave me alone," she pleaded.  
"Are you scared of me?" He asked. "Like, for real?"

Her fingers nervously played with each other while she nodded.

"Why?" He asked.  
"I just am," she answered.  
"I'm sorry," he put on his biggest smile. "I didn't mean to scare you. You should see what we filmed though. It was perfect, and I owe you a big thank you. So how about we go out tonight for a bite to eat as my way of saying thank you?"  
"I'm busy," she said.  
"Tomorrow?" He asked.  
"I'm busy," she repeated.  
"Well, when are you free?" He asked.  
"Never," she answered.

She moved her eyes down and hurried inside before he could drill further into that. He watched her run off while he chuckled lowly. She could run, but she couldn't get away. He wasn't one to take no for an answer, and he wasn't gonna start now.

He watched as the "earlier today" segments were played that night. The camera crew had done a great deal capturing the moments just right. These short segments showed his lunatic side perfectly. He wasn't even surprised when he was called into Stephanie's office before his match. He figured her and Hunter wanted to thank him for doing a great job. He was surprised to find Mackenzie in there too.

"What's going on?" He asked.  
"There's whispers going around that the segment you did with Mackenzie wasn't exactly planned," Stephanie answered.  
"What do you mean? You asked me to do this. You even brought in that stupid girl who couldn't act for shit. I just chose someone who could instead," he said.  
"It's a damn good segment. Almost too good," she sighed. "People are saying it was real. That you didn't warn her about what was going on."  
"Mackenzie?" Hunter asked.

She mumbled something no one could hear while keeping her eyes down. It was clear to Dean that she had been blindsided by this meeting too.

"Speak up," Hunter said.  
"I knew," she lied. "I was told to act as real as possible. I didn't know I overdid it. I'm sorry."  
"We can all press out a few tears on command, but you were really crying," Stephanie said.  
"I was thinking about something sad from my personal life to bring those tears out," Mackenzie said.

For a few seconds no one spoke. They all stared at her, and she continued to keep her eyes down.

"Alright then," Stephanie said.  
"Would you be interested in being brought back on camera with Dean?" Hunter asked.  
"No!" Mackenzie finally looked up. "I chose to help out because that other woman failed. I just wanna clean and not be noticed by the world."  
"Okay," Hunter nodded. "You can leave. Take the rest of the night off and go home. You'll still get full pay. It's our way of thanking you for stepping in."  
"Thank you," she said.

She hurried out of the office, and Dean stood up too. He walked out more casually until he was out of sight. Then he took off and caught up with her quickly. He grabbed her arm gently and spun her around to look at her.

"Why didn't you rat me out in there?" He asked.  
"I just wanna go on with my life without making you more mad," she said.  
"Mad?" He chuckled. "You do know it was all for show, right? I'm not really that mad behind the scenes."  
"Every man is that mad," she said.  
"Auch! Putting us all in a box, are we?" He said.

He reached a hand up to stroke her cheek, and she flinched by his touch.

"You really are a scaredy cat, aren't you?" He said. "You'll learn soon enough you don't have to be afraid of me."  
"Please, just leave me alone," she begged.  
"Maybe," he smirked. "Thank you for having my back. You heard Hunter. You got the rest of the night off. What are you planning on doing?"  
"Nothing," she said.  
"I thought you were busy tonight," he said.  
"I am," she looked scared again. "I have... this thing..."  
"Sure you do," he laughed. "You're not a great liar. It's alright. Run off. I'll still be here tomorrow and any other day after that."


	2. Catwoman

Dean had watched the backstage segment with him and Mackenzie over and over after going home that night. He hated that those tears were real and had been brought out because of him. He wanted her to look scared, but he didn't want her to actually be scared.

He walked into the arena with his mind set on the prize next day. One way or another, he would get her to go out with him at least once. All he needed was a few private moments with her for her to see he really wasn't the man that he portraited inside the ring.

He ate a loss to Dolph Ziggler in the main event and threw a tantrum in the ring afterwards. He tore the commentator table apart and threatened the people behind the desk. All as scripted. Security came rushing down to stop him from choking out Michael Cole. He pushed the first one away and then stomped up the ramp in anger.

"Great work," Hunter greeted him in gorilla.  
"Thanks," Dean said.

He went to the locker room to shower and change. As he left the locker room he spotted Mackenzie walking further down the hall. She was off work too. He smiled to himself as he watched her ass. That was a nice view. He slowly increased his pace, catching her just as she opened the door and walked out of the arena.

"Have you tried that new Thai restaurant downtown?" He asked out of the blue.  
"Not yet," she answered.  
"I've been meaning to try it out, but I'm not sure if I even like Thai food. Do you like it?" He asked.  
"Yes," she answered.  
"Great," He grinned. "Then we'll check it out together."

He gently grabbed her arm and walked towards his car.

"No, please!" She begged.  
"I'm not gonna hurt you," he let go of her arm. "My usual charm really doesn't work on you. I keep scaring you. I'm sorry. Let me do this the right way. Please, Mackenzie, come with me for some Thai food. That's all. I promise."  
"I'm busy," she said.  
"No, you're not. Please, don't lie to me. Give me one good reason not to go there with me, and not being hungry doesn't count either," he said.  
"I'm... I'm..." She tried.  
"That's what I thought," he laughed. "Come on. It's just food. I'll drive you home afterwards."  
"No!" She snapped.  
"Or I'll call a cab," he said. "Sorry, I didn't know your address was secret."

He found his car keys and unlocked his car. She still stood rooted on the spot when he turned to look at her again.

"Just food?" She asked.  
"Maybe a soda too, but that's it," he answered.  
"Okay, food. I can do food," she said.

It seemed more like she spoke to herself than him, as if she was trying to convince herself it was alright. He wondered what had made her this timid. Most women would jump on the opportunity of eating with him, but she wasn't one of them.

"Well, come on, catwoman," he said.  
"Catwoman?" She asked.  
"You're still a scaredy cat, but that doesn't sound as good as catwoman," he chuckled. "And you're too cute not to have some sort of nickname."

It took around 15 minutes, but she slowly relaxed around him down at the Thai restaurant. He did what he did best: talk. He talked her ear off, told her all about himself that he could think of while making sure to ask her a bunch of questions about her too. She slowly relaxed and started keeping eye contact with him for longer time.

"Sorry, but we're closing," a waiter said.  
"Already?" Dean looked at his watch. "Wow, we've been here three hours. Time flies in good company."

He paid the bill, and they left the restaurant together.

"Do you want a ride home?" He asked.  
"No, I'll walk," she answered.  
"I'm not gonna let you walk home alone in the middle of the night. I'd be heartbroken if something happened to you," he said.  
"I know the streets," she said.  
"Hmm, what aren't you telling me?" He teased.  
"Nothing," she shook her head. "I'll call a cab."  
"I'm really not allowed to see where you live?" He asked.

She looked down for a moment, and he took her silence as it was meant. A big, fat no.

"Okay, fair enough. Can I take you out another time?" He asked.  
"Dean, please," she looked up again. "I did as you wanted, and now I'm asking you again to please leave me alone."  
"Nope!" He grinned. "But I'll make you a deal. The next 14 days you'll hang out with me. We'll talk at the arena, and we'll go out each night for a bite to eat. If you still want me to leave you alone after that, I will."  
"Can I get that in writing?" She asked.  
"Wow, you really think I'll break a promise?" He asked.

They looked at each other. She was the first one to put on a little smile. His own smile followed a second later.

"14 days," she said. "And then you'll leave me alone?"  
"Pinky swear," he chuckled. "But only if you call a cab and don't walk home. I'll stay and wait until the cab arrives everyday."  
"Deal," she said.


	3. Bad memories

In theory 14 days had seemed like a long time. In reality it went by way too fast. To her there was a stop, and that made her comfortable. She opened up around him, and he knew he had struck gold with her. A woman actually looking him in the eyes instead of drooling over his muscles. A woman actually listening and not trying to get him into bed. A woman who way too quickly made him fall in love.

"Final day," she said.

She leaned back in her seat when she had finished her plate of food. He had taken her back to the Thai restaurant. It felt right to end the deal where it had started, and he hoped it wouldn't be the end after all but instead a new beginning. A beginning without a deadline.

"I'm going for a goodnight kiss then," he said.  
"You promised, Dean," she reminded him. "Only food."  
"Would it be so bad if I kissed you?" He asked.

She sighed and nervously ran her fingers over the edge of the table.

"Come on, catwoman, talk to me," he said.  
"It's just been a while," she said lowly.  
"Since what?" He asked.  
"Since I've been with a man," she answered.

He grinned at that answer, and she looked down. Her cheeks were red with embarrassment.

"How long since you've been with a man?" He asked.  
"Two years," she answered.  
"Damn!" He whistled. "No need to be afraid. I won't hurt you."  
"Dean," she sighed.

She finally looked up at met his eyes again. She had a look in her eyes he hadn't seen before.

"I wanna show you something," she said. 

He could see that whatever it was, it was serious.

"Okay," he nodded.

They got into his car, and she told him where to go. Soon they pulled up in front of an apartment complex. She didn't say anything when she exited the car. For once he kept quiet too as he followed her up the stairs until she stopped in front of a door and took out her keys. He looked at the name sign on the door. Mackenzie Kirby. She had taken him to her apartment.

"Before I unlock the door, I wanna make it very clear that I've never had a man inside before so don't expect anything," she said.

He smiled and nodded. She unlocked the door and let him inside. It was a small apartment. The front door led directly into a small living room. The other doors were open, and he could spot three other small rooms. A bedroom, a kitchen and a bathroom.

"Keep your shoes on. You might wanna get out of here fast after you hear what I have to tell you," she said.  
"It can't be that bad," he said.

She sighed and licked her dry lips. It was clear he wanted something with her, and she wanted the same with him, but she couldn't let him in without him knowing who she used to be.

"It's not much," she waved a hand out in the air. "But it's mine. I own everything inside these walls, and that makes me proud and happy."  
"You should be," he said.  
"Two years ago I changed my life around. I started cleaning at a school until the arena had an opening. It pays more than the school. I used to have a lot more. More money, a bigger place, a lot of crap I didn't really need," she said. "But it came with a prize."  
"Nothing in life is free," he smiled. "So what did you do? Were you a thief, or did you scam people?"  
"I was a prostitute," she said.

The silence fell thick as he stared at her. He half expected her to say it was a joke, but nothing came. She expected him to run out, but he kept standing there.

"Go on," he finally said.  
"I started on the streets until I got in touch with an escort service. You think it's better and that you got protection, but it's all the same. Men, money, sex. And the fucking feeling of being nothing. Sure, I got money, but at what cost? I felt like shit, and my body was always in pain. And the violent customers..."  
"Wait, violent?" He stopped her. "Did you have many of those?"  
"Too many," she sighed. "And I sucked it up, covered the bruises with makeup, and went on to the next one. I hate myself for doing that, Dean. And I won't be mad if you wanna walk out of that door right now. But I couldn't continue this thing with you, whatever it is, without letting you know what you have to deal with."

Silence fell again for a few seconds, and then he smiled. He kicked off his shoes, walked over to her, and wrapped his arms around her.

"What I have to deal with is a wonderful woman who has stolen my heart," he said. "And now I'm gonna kiss you."

He leaned down and kissed her. It was soft and experimental at first but soon got heated. He reached under her ass to lift her up without breaking the kiss. She wrapped her legs around his waist while he carried her into the bedroom and gently placed her down on the bed. His hand slid under her blouse, feeling the skin of her stomach.

"Dean," she broke the kiss.  
"I'm not gonna hurt you, Mackenzie," he looked her in the eyes. "I don't care about any of them. What they did to you wasn't sex. It was... Something else. Something I would never do to you. Let me show you how good it can really feel."  
"I'm scared," she whispered. "Not of you, but I have all these bad memories, and they're blending with what I feel for you."  
"I know," he said. "But I'll make damn sure to push away any doubt and only give you good memories if you'll let me."

His fingers still danced over her stomach, aching to move further up to touch her breasts. He wouldn't do it until she gave him the green light. He leaned down to kiss her cheek before moving his mouth to her ear.

"Let me pleasure you like you've never been pleasured before. I guarantee you don't want me to stop once I get started," he said.  
"What if I disappoint you?" She asked.  
"That will never happen," he licked her earlobe. "I'll take such good care of you, catwoman. I'll spend all night taking things slow, going easy on you, making love to you."  
"Dean!" She whimpered and grabbed his tee. "I want you."


	4. Pictures

Dean was a happy man. Three months had passed so fast, and he was head over heels in love. Mackenzie was everything he could ever have dreamed of in a woman, and then some more. Since that first night in her apartment he had showed her again and again how good it could be to be with the right one.

"Love you," he pulled her close and kissed the back of her head.  
"Dean, we gotta get out of bed," she said.  
"Love you, love you, love you," he said while delivering more kisses.  
"Dean!" She laughed. "I love you too, you goofball, but we gotta get on the road or we won't arrive in time."  
"I'm in the main event," he said.  
"You gotta be there before the shows starts. You can't fuck it up now that you're doing a two weeks tour," she said.  
"Best part is that you're coming with me," he said.

When the company had annouced a month earlier that they were taking the show on the road, he had gone straight to Stephanie and Hunter and asked if Mackenzie could come along. It was no secret to his bosses that they were dating. They had allowed it, and he couldn't be more happy. Two weeks apart would have been too much.

It took several hours to drive to the first town, but they got there in time. The show went on without problems, and a bunch of them decided to crash the hotel's bar afterwards. Mackenzie and Dean were sitting with some of his friends. She didn't notice Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson in the other end of the room.

"Holy shit!" Karl stared from afar. "That's Mackenzie!"  
"Yeah, she's dating Dean," Luke said.  
"How did they meet?" Karl asked.  
"Really, Karl? You haven't noticed her cleaning around the arena?" Luke asked. "Wait a minute, how do you know her then?"

Karl took out his phone and started scrolling through some old pictures.

"You know that escort service I use from time to time?" He asked. "She was one of my favorites. I saved the screenshots of her page back in the days. In the beginning I missed her a lot, so I used her pictures instead. Here, take a look."

He handed Luke his phone, and Luke's eyes widened. They weren't erotic pictures. They were straight up vulgar pictures along with prices of her services.

"She was so good," Karl sighed longingly. "She could arch the back like crazy in doggystyle, so her ass popped up so high and was ready for a pounding unlike any other."

Luke pretended to keep looking at the pictures, but instead he sent them to himself without telling Karl. This was interesting information to him. Information that might come in handy at some point. He handed the phone back to Karl, and then looked over at Dean and Mackenzie.

"All I'm saying is that I might end up asking you to move in with me," Dean smirked.  
"You might? Well, then I might end up saying yes," Mackenzie said.  
"Just ask her already," Seth threw a couple of peanuts at them.  
"What do you say, catwoman?" Dean asked.  
"As long as it's in your house and not my crappy apartment," she answered.  
"Our baby boy is all grown up," Roman chuckled.  
"Never thought we'd see the day," Seth said.  
"This calls for another round," Dean said.  
"Not for me," she said. "I'm gonna go to bed, but stay and have fun."

She kissed him goodnight and walked out of the bar. He walked up to the counter to order a round of drinks when Luke moved up next to him.

"So you and Mackenzie," he said.  
"Yeah," Dean said.  
"Interesting," Luke smirked. "Do you happen to know, what she did before cleaning?"

Dean suddenly felt cold and just stared at Luke.

"With the way you're looking right now, I'm gonna say yes," Luke chuckled. "I like the pictures."  
"What pictures?" Dean asked.

Luke pulled the pictures up on his phone and scrolled through them while showing them to Dean.

"I think this one is my favorite. Look how far up inside her that dildo is," he said.  
"What the fuck do you want?" Dean snarled.  
"Nothing yet," Luke smirked. "I'll think of something. Until then the pictures are safe with me."  
"Fuck you!" Dean snarled.  
"Have a nice night, Dean," Luke chuckled.

The bartender placed Dean's order in front of him. He gathered all three glasses and moved back to the table.

"What's wrong?" Roman asked.  
"Nothing," Dean slammed down his drink. "I'm gonna go upstairs."  
"Aw, miss her already?" Seth teased.  
"Goodnight," Dean mumbled.

She turned around surprised when he came barging in through the door. He strode fast towards her, wrapped his arms around her, and hugged her tightly.

"Dean, what's the matter?" She asked.  
"Nothing," he said down in her hair. "I love you so much, Mackenzie."  
"I love you too, but you're freaking me out. What happened in that short amount of time for you to act this way? You almost seem scared," she said.  
"Sorry, sorry," he looked at her and managed to smile. "Too much to drink and too many hours on the road earlier. I just wanna go to sleep with you in my arms."


	5. Everybody hurts

Dean managed to be himself the next two weeks so she didn't catch on to something being wrong. Luke kept his distance all the way up until the night before the final show where he caught Dean outside the locker room.

"I know what I want," Luke said.  
"What?" Dean snarled.  
"Her," Luke said.

Dean's jaw dropped, and he stared at the other man.

"You have got to be kidding me!" He yelled.  
"Ssh, someone might hear you when you're mad like that, and then they'll come around asking what's going on, and I'll be forced to show them the pictures," Luke smirked. "Do you want people to see the pictures of your girlfriend?"  
"You fucking asshole!" Dean growled lowly.  
"One time with her. Tomorrow afternoon at 3. I need to get off before the final show," Luke said. "After that I'll delete the pictures."  
"I'll delete the pictures!" Dean took a step closer.  
"Sure, I'll hand over my phone so you can delete them," Luke chuckled. "Tomorrow. Make sure she isn't late."

Dean walked out to the car where she was waiting. He managed to put on a fake smile so she wouldn't catch on to what was wrong. He kept quiet with the whole thing the entire evening and most of next day. He ordered room servive for lunch, and waited with opening the toxic subject until after they had eaten.

"Luke knows," he said.  
"Knows what?" She asked.  
"About your past. He has pictures from the escort service you used to work with," he answered.  
"How did he get those?" She asked.  
"How the fuck should I know?" He felt angry. "He's got them, and he's gonna show them to everyone unless..."

He looked at her, hoping she could fill in the blanks on her own.

"Unless what?" She asked.  
"Unless you go to his room at 3," he answered.  
"And do what exactly?" She asked.  
"You know," he sighed.  
"I wanna hear you say it," she said.  
"He wants to fuck you!" He yelled.

He jumped up from the bed and started pacing the floor. She watched him for ten long seconds until he finally spoke again.

"Would it really be that bad?" He asked.  
"Excuse me?" She raised her voice.  
"You've done it before, and it's only gonna be this once. He'll delete the pictures afterwards, and no one will ever see them," he said.  
"Do you seriously want me to go to his room and fuck him?" She asked.  
"Come on, Mackenzie, just this once. I'm thinking about you here. Everyone will see those pictures if you don't," he said.

He looked at her with pleading eyes. For a few seconds she stared back, and then stood up too.

"Get out," she said.  
"What?" he asked.  
"I have a customer to get ready for, and I don't want you in here while I'm transforming myself into a common whore!" She growled. "Get the fuck out!"  
"I'll see you tonight after the show," he said.

He walked over to kiss her, but she dodged him and walked into the bathroom. She slammed the door with force and waited to hear him leave the room. Once she heard the door close behind him, she finally broke out in tears.

The hours had gone by so slow, and he had pictured every possible sex position with her and Luke. The show finally started, and he and Roman were opening. He pushed his feelings aside and did his job flawlessly. Afterwards he walked to the locker room and looked at his phone. She hadn't reached out to him at all.

 _"Are you okay?"_ He texted her.

He took a shower and got dressed while checking his phone constantly. She didn't answer. Afterwards him and Roman walked out of the locker room when he spotted Luke and Karl further down.

"Just a second," he said.

He sprinted down to the two men and stopped in front of Luke. He didn't say anything, but his eyes screamed of the one question he didn't dare asking.

"She never showed up," Luke said,  
"What?" Dean asked surprised.  
"A shame," Luke said.

He walked away and left Karl standing there awkwardly.

"He told me," Karl finally said. "When we met up to go here tonight. I made him delete the pictures."  
"She didn't show up," Dean mumbled.  
"Luke never wanted to fuck her, Dean. He just wanted to hurt you, and you allowed him to do it," Karl said.

Dean took out his phone and tried calling her. It went straight to voicemail.

"Roman!" He sprinted back towards his friend. "We need to get to the hotel now!"

He had explained in the car what had happened, and then taken a tongue lashing unlike any other from Roman. His friend was pissed off that Dean had asked his girlfriend to do that. They had both hurried up to Dean's room. Only Dean's things were there. She had left.

"No, no, no!" Dean cried.  
"Can you really blame her?" Roman said.  
"I need to see her," Dean started packing.  
"Don't leave without me. I'm gonna go pack my things too," Roman said.

She had a lot of hours headstart, and Dean was certain she was already home. She had probably packed her things the second he left the hotel room, and then taken a flight home. He had messed up way more than any time before. He wasn't sure if he could fix it, but he had to try. He drove straight to her apartment complex and parked in front.

"I'm going with you," Roman said.  
"Why?" Dean asked.  
"To keep you fucking grounded. You're gonna stay outside her door unless she invites you in. You're gonna listen, and you're gonna do what she wants, no matter what it might be," Roman said.

He nodded and then walked up the stairs with Roman right behind him. He knocked on her door and was actually surprised when she opened. She crossed her arms and stared at him.

"Mackenzie," he took a step forward.  
"Stay right there!" She snapped.

Roman placed a hand on his shoulder, and Dean stood still. He swallowed hard and looked at her again.

"I'm sorry," he said as tears ran down his cheeks. "I messed up. I did the only thing I could think of to protect you."  
"You didn't do it to protect me. You did it to protect you. You don't want anybody to know that your girlfriend used to be a prostitute. You're embarrassed by me," she said.

He didn't know what to say. She was half way right. He wasn't embarrassed by her, but it was true that he was trying to protect himself and his career too. If word got out that he was dating a former prostitute, the press would have a field day with it.

"Please," he spoke again. "I messed up. Give me a chance to correct my mistake."  
"Correct your mistake?" She snorted. "Dean, you don't get it. You can date a prostitute, but you can't prostitute your girlfriend. The second you crossed that line, you went from boyfriend to pimp. You're worse than all those costumers I used to serve. At least they were honest and knew what they wanted. You were hiding behind your charm and the whole good guy act."  
"I love you!" He sobbed loudly.  
"I suggest you figure out how to stop," she said.

She started closing the door, but he stopped her by catching the door with his hand.

"Please!" He begged.  
"Let go," Roman grabbed his wrist. "Dean, let go right now!"

Dean held on to the door for another second and then let go. Roman looked at her and gave her a weak smile.

"I'm sorry," he said.  
"So am I," she said.  
"I'll make sure he won't bother you at work," he said.  
"No need. I took care of it. I called the school, and I can get my old job back," she said. "You're a good man, Roman. Stay that way."

She closed the door and locked it. Dean turned around, wrapped his arms around Roman, and sobbed down in his friend's shirt.

"What did I do, Roman? What did I do?" He cried.  
"You messed up," Roman said.  
"Help me fix it. Tell me how I can fix it," Dean pleaded.  
"You can't," Roman sighed. "You gotta let her go."


End file.
